More than 40 cruise ships worldwide are reported to have had outbreaks of COVID-19. In enforcing the World Health Organization (WHO)’s Guide to Ship Sanitation, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the U.S. established the Vessel Sanitation Program (VSP), requiring cruise ships to undergo sanitation inspections and pass VSP standards when calling at U.S. ports. Japan should establish its own ship sanitation program and system for on-board ship inspections by following this leading example on the part of the U.S.

One of the reasons for the decline of the Ainu population in the Ezo area during the late Edo period, or the early 19th century, is reported to have been a smallpox epidemic introduced through ships engaged in maritime trade. It was the custom of the Ainu to flee to the mountains during outbreaks of smallpox and other infectious diseases. Here, I would like to introduce the countermeasures implemented by the Matsumae domain and the Edo shogunate to control the spread of infections in Ezo. Learning about containment strategies from that period could prove beneficial for today’s Japan as the number of COVID-19 cases continues to rise.

As Japan’s first research institute specializing in ocean education, the Institute of Noto Satoumi Education and Studies promotes the “Noto Model for Ocean Education”, a full participatory, active learning model for ocean education based on the new National Curriculum Standards and the ideals of the SDGs. Through inquiry-based lessons and information sharing approaches that follow the curiosity and interests of teachers and students, the Institute, in cooperation with the Ocean Education Pioneer School Program, aims to realize a society where even more students and educators study the ocean.